782 charging problems
 

First off I want to say this site has been a HUGE help with my 782 past issues. The KT17 series II finally bit the dust. Went to small engine warehouse and bought a new briggs & Stratton vanguard direct replacement engine. I thought it would be just a plug-and-play kind of deal, which he pretty much is. But now I have charging issues. Bought a new battery and battery cables with a new solenoid. Tractor starts and runs, but when I turn on the headlights or the PTO there is a huge draw on The voltmeter on tractor. Which interns kills the battery. I checked the voltage regulator I'm getting about 5-6amp out of the regulator. I don't know what is causing the huge draw on the battery when the PTO is on. Checked all my connections I know that I got good grounds. All the safety switches are bypassed. Been like at for years. My father was the original owner of the tractor I am now the third owner of the tractor. So I know the tractor. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

First, welcome to OCC......... :Welcome2:

:bigthink:
Since your wiring is not original now and we have no idea how it was wired, the best we can offer you is....sounds like something isn't wired right, causing a huge amperage load.

What is the voltage at the battery at full throttle(pto and lights not on)?
Sam Mac will be along shortly,he knows the vanguards charging system
If it's charging (~14.5V full throttle), and your regulator is large enough
capacity, then maybe there is a short somewhere.

Edit. Roland was faster typist than I and a better electrian

The v-regs on the Vanguard are known to be weak. Replace it with a Kohler voltage regulator.

I do agree on the wiring may be incorrect though....

I had a 782, yellow one, a few weeks ago that was displaying the exact symptoms you describe. It ended up being that the engine was not securely fastened to the frame and not grounded.

At full throttle, at the battery with pto and headlights on. 11.5-12amp. With nothing on and at and full throttle. 12.5. There's only 2 things to hook up, starter wire and the one plug. Which is a direct fit into the original tractor wiring harness

Lets get our terms straight..... AMPS? Or VOLTS? Big, huge difference between the two. Which to you mean?? :Unknown:

My bad on that.... Volts... Not amp

IF......everything is wired right and functioning correctly, you should have ~14.5VDC at the battery.

Don't know how you determined that your getting "5 or 6 amps" from the regulator. That engine should have a 15 amp or so charging system. You should as Roland said have around 14.5 volts at the battery running wide open. I suggest that you check every and I mean every electrical connection to be sure that is not the problem. Check the output of the VR. you should have about 30 volts AC going into the VR and about 14.5 DC coming out.